Hat-former.



P. V. MARTINO.

HAT FORMER.

APPLlCATiON FILED OCT. 15. 191- 1 168,665, Patented Jan. 18, 1916.

NVENTOR. WITNESSES: %'/J fl MiTORNEEf aaes cca.

-a eroii.

- .rxn'nno v. MARTINO, mm rronK, :n. .Y.

Hemmer/inn.

. following, taken in connection with the accompan-ying sheet of"drawings, is a "full, clear, andconcise description. I

The present 'inventionrelates generally to improvements in hat formingdevices and is more specifically directedto the production other "blocksfor forming that particular I style of head gear or head-dress, in whichthe crown isindented or telescoped;

In the production of headdress ,or hats having tlescoped or indentedcrowns, it ,is

now customary-to employ a block "on which the fabric is stretohedpreparatory to the sl'iap'ing operation and a former to which the fabricis then applied for shaping. It

3 is ohvious that this necessity for using two blocks is a decideddisadvantage, particularly by reason of the fact that it increases thecost of production of a hat andcompels 'a manufacturer to "carrya largesupply 3 of blocks,whicl1 naturally requires considerableyspa'ce forstorage. Furthermore, it ismani'fest that in employing two blocks inthema'nner just referred to, the "crown of the hatcannot be producedwith the precii sion and symmetry, which is demanded by fastidiousdressers, since after the fabric has been stretched on the stretchingblock and then removed to the shaping block, it cannot be shaped orformed to the desired configurationas readily as would be the case werethe entireoperation carried out on one block. 'Many other "disadvantagesof the employment of the present method of forming telescoped hat crownsexist, and are well Known to those skilled, in the art to which thisinvention apperta ins.

The present invention *is'designed to obviate the "disadvantageousfeatures of the existingqtypeslof hat formers orblocks, particularlythose employed for the production of .hatshavinga telescoped crown, andone ofitsprincipal objects is to provide a means for doing "the "work,which will consist of a singlfibloc'k, a portion of this *blockbeingadjustable sothat'the 'fabric may be'prop-' Specification of LettersEatent.

PatentedJan, 13, 1 i

' Application filed October 15,1914. *SerialNo; 866344.

erly and accurately positioned 1 and stretched upon the block fo'r'theforming or shaping mi operation, after which "these parts areagainrelativelyadjusted and the shaping operation performed without removingthe-fabric from the block. By'theemployment o 'f any invention in thisway, it will not be ne ces l'i sary to transfer the :fabric from oneblock to theother as is at present the caseyall of the operationsincident to the stretching-of the fabric, being performed one single'b'lock'. Furthermore, by the employment i of my {in f vention, a deviceis provided which may be simply and economically produced {and which bythe arrangement of' its parts may be assembled with facility and producea solidand durable-device, which willgrea'tly aid in reducing theexpense of hat 'production as compared toexisting methods.

A further object of my invention is "to' provide a hat block orformenpossessing the advantagesabove enumerated, which will re fduce thewaste of the fabric or -maiterial from which the hats are produced to aminimum and will'embody'mea-ns *in its con struction, whereby the fabric*from which the hat is made, may be applied and secured thereto inamanner which will enable the user oi the block or former t'o obtainaperfectly telescoped crown, the indentationsur rounding the peripheryor-edge of the crow'n beingof like dimensions throughout. 1 This isimpossible of accomplishment with j the present type of formers orblocks, owing to the lack of eliicient means 01' measuring and applying,and securing the fabric in place prior to manipulation or shaping. Manyother advantagesiincident to the employment of my invention will beobserved as the description proceeds.

To render a clear and comprehensive description of my invention, Ihaveelecte'dto illustrate'and describe a'specifi c embodiment thereof,it being obvious that various ,-details of structure may he changedwithout departing from the spirit and scope of .my invention. V

I shall now proceed to 'de'scribemy :inventien with reference to theaccompanying sheet of c'lrawings, and .thenpoin't out with moreparticularity, the essential elements of novelty therein in theappended-claims. i

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a sectional elevation showing the body ofthe block and the crown or head piece thereof, in adjusted position withthe fabric stretched thereover prior to the forming operation, and Fig.2 is a sectional elevation showing the crown or head piece seated uponthe body portion of the block with the former in engagement with thefabric.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, in which like characters ofreference are employed to indicate similar parts throughout the severalviews, 7 represents the body portion of the block, which may be made ofwood or any other material, suitable for the purpose. As is well known,the blocks for forming head-dress are made of various dimensions and inmany configurations to suit the different shapes of heads of wearers ofthe products to be made thereon, and it is obvious that my improved hatblock is adapted to these various requirements in a like manner- It willbe observed'that the body of the block 7 is provided with two verticallydirected, preferably cylini drical bores S, which form bearing surfaces;0r guide ways for the rods 9,wh1ch are slidable therein, the upper endsof these rods 9 beingembedded and rigidly secured within the headercrown piece 10 which is adapted to be seated upon and form a part of thebody portion 7 of the block as hereinafter explained. Centrallypositioned in the body portion of the block 7 is a recess '11, wherebythe block may be mounted upon the usual-jack or other suitablesupporting standards (not shown) when in use. The base of the block orbody portion7 adjacent to the bores 8 is provided with the preferablymetallic fittings 12, which are rigidly secured thereto in any suitablemanner,

such' as by means of screws 13, each of these fittings being aperturedat 1-1 to receive a pin 15 having an angularly bent portion-16 at oneextremity to provide a handle or gripping part for actuating the samewithin said apertures.

; In the employment of my invention, the

head or crown piece 10 is raised to the position shown in Fig. 1 andsupported in that manner by inserting the pin 15 within the lowermostlaterally directed socket 17, in each of the rods 9. The fabric 18isthen applied as shown in Fig. 1 and firmly secured to the body portion 7of the block by'means of a tie-band 19, which forces the fabric intoengagement with the cut-out portion 20, surrounding the lower edge ofthe body portion 7 of the block. It will be noted that when the head orcrown piece 10 is in the position shown in Fig. 1, the space between theupper surface A of the body portion 7, and under surface B of the heador crown piece 10 is approximately thatiof the height of the upwardlydirected just described, the crown or head piece 10 g is then lowered toits seat on the top of the body 'portion 7, as shown'in Fig. 2 by thewithdrawal of the pins 15 from the. lowermost sockets in the supportingor adjusting rods 9. The crown or head piece is then locked in positionon the top of the body portion 7 by re-inserting the pins in the upperor second laterally directed socket 21 lnieach of said rods, as 1sclearly apparent from Fig. 2. The former 22 havlng the centrallypositioned aperture 23 for per-' mitting application of heat to thefabric,

on the block is now brought into use, the edge of the depending flange24 engaging the fabric 18 and, under pressure, forcing it down into thespace formed by the inner face of the upwardly directed flange 21, andthe outer wall C of the head or crown piece 10, the relative position ofthese parts in the manner described with reference to Fig. 1, providingfor the production ofa perfect and symmetrical telescoping efiect, as ismanifest from the cooperative relation of the parts as shown inFig. 2.*1 i 7 Nhen the former 22 has been forced into the position shown inFig. 2, the fabric 18 is dried out in the usual manner bythe applicationof heat through an aperture or orifice 23, so that when thefabric isremovedfrom the body portion 7 of the block by the loosening of thetie-band 19, the contour of the fabric producingthe telescoped effectwill be substantially permanent.

of the block shown may be provided with an outwardly directed flange forforming the hat rim, this outwardly directed flange being made asanintegral part of the block or arranged to be adjustable or detachable.

Other modifications of my invention'may be effected to permit itsapplication to the production of various forms of head-dress, all ofwhich are within the spirit and scope of my invention, which is broadlydirected to the provision of an adjustable hat block V If desired, it isapparent that the base or former for the production of head-dressarranged to cooperate with said body and head portions to produce atelescopic hat crown.

3. A hat block comprising a body portion and a head piece mountedthereon and vert i. A hat block comprising a body portion,

and a head piece mounted thereon, guide ways formed in said bodyportion, rods rigidly secured to said head piece and movable within saidguide ways to adjust said head piece relatively to said body portion andmeans for engagement with said rods to lock said head piece againstmovement.

5. A hat block comprising a body portion having an upwardly directedflange surrounding the upper edge thereof, a plurality of guide-waysformed in said body portion,

a head piece adapted for seating upon said body portion to lie withinsaid flange, rods rigidly secured to said head piece and movable in onedirection within said guide-ways to raise said head piece fromengagement with said body portion, whereby the work may be accuratelypositioned on the block for manipulation, and in the opposite directionto reseat, said head piece on said body portion upon the positioning ofthe work,

and means for operating upon the work to shape the same relatively tothe cooperating parts of said block.

6. A hat block comprising a body portion having an upwardly directedflange surrounding the upper edge thereof, a detachable head pieceadapted to rest upon and mate with said body portion to form a completeblock, saidhead piece being shaped to lie within said flange to providea recess between said flange and said head piece, and a former adaptedto register with said recess.

7. A hatblock comprising a body portion having an upwardly directedflange formed by an extension of the side wall thereof, a detachablehead piece adapted to mate with said body portion to produce a completeblock, said head piece being shaped to lie within said flange andprovide a recess be tween said flangeand said head piece,tmeans carriedby said head piece and adapted to movably engage with said body portion,

whereby said head piece may be adjusted in adjusted position, means forlocking said head piece in engagement with said body portion and aformer adapted to cooperate with said block, for the purposes described.

8. A hat block comprising a body portion, the wall thereof beingextended upwardly to provide a flange surrounding the top of said bodyportion, a solid head piece shaped to normally lie within said flangeand of a size to provide a recess formed by said flange and the wall ofsaid head piece, means carried by said head piece for raising the sameout of engagement with said body portion for the application of work tothe block for manipulation, means for securing the work to the bodyportion of said block, means for reseating and locking said head piecein engagement with the body portion when the work has been applied tosaid bloc r and means arranged for operating upon the work incooperation with said body portion and said head piece, for the purposesdescribed.

9. A telescoping device for hats comprising a. block consisting of abody portion and a detachable head portion, said head portion beingprovided with means rigidly secured thereto and movable within said bodyportion to render said head piece vertically adjustable relatively tosaid body portion, and means for locking said head piece in suchadjusted position.

10. A telescoping device for hats comprising a block, consisting of abody portion and a vertically adjustable solid head piece mounted onsaid body portion, means being provided on said body portion tocooperate with said head piece to provide a die, and a former adapted tocooperate with said die to shape the work;

11. A two-piece hat block having a body portion and a head piece, meansconnected to said head piece and cooperating with said body portion,whereby said head piece may be vertically adjusted relatively to saidbody portion for positioning the work, and means for seating said headpiece on said body portion when the work has been positioned, and

In witness whereof I have-'hereuntoset my hand in the presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

PIETRO V. MARTINO.

Witnesses WM. C. DUNN, LAURA E, SMITH.

(topics of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). G.

